Holiday dilemma

When you are used to Brittany Ferries from Caen to Portsmouth it is a bit of a shock to the system to do the Interislander ferry between the north and south islands…

A 3 hour crossing of stunning scenery! We arrived at a place called Picton and as we were second off the ferry (which was absolutely heaving) we dashed into town to get a parking spot and find a place for lunch. This was the view from our lunch table…

The Marlborough Sound, which is where we are, is famous for its green lipped mussels which were all the rage in the UK a few years ago. So a bowl of the said molluscs and a glass of local Sav Blanc was just the job…and possibly the best mussels we’ve ever tasted?!

After lunch we decided to have a go at paddle boarding, which has always struck me as a bit dull. But I always say you can’t judge something until you have given it a go. Anyway, it is a bit dull! Will stick to kayaking in future.

So to our dilemma. We had planned our tour of the south island; wine tasting tomorrow, then off down the west coast to the southern Alps and Queenstown before heading back to Christchurch for Friday evening. But it is so lovely here and there is so much to do that we are wondering whether to stay in the north and do lots of activities rather than see lots of even more beautiful scenery, but spend more time driving….such a quandry…any views?

Our best advice is that unless you intend to go there again, see as much as you can. All our boys have been there and rave about South Island! Enjoy it, what ever you decide. Fab weather here in Spain at the moment! Pat and Tim Xx